The Flower's Saint
by Cherushii Akane
Summary: Therius accompanies General Asthar to Lazulis Castle to investigate the island and hopefully find the source of the land's decay. While there, he and Asthar are tasked with guarding a mage that has been a frequent target from bandits and thugs alike. How will this mage affect his journey to save the land from further decay?


Lazulis Island was a true gem of the Empire. Although it may seem to be isolated, it still had a major connection to the motherland. The castle in the middle of the island reached elegantly to the sky with its turrets. Sunlight glinted off of the stone walls and occasional windows. A giant cannon lay nestled among the castle's towers, acting as a silent defender of the island.

The town that surrounded the castle's front gate, which wasn't quite as magnificent as Lazulis Castle, was nevertheless a grand gathering of houses, shops, and people. From the open plazas to the narrow alleyways, the townspeople walked, shopped, chatted, and carried out any business as they would any other day. Children ran around chasing animals or playing around the fountains; mothers chatted outside of their houses; and merchants and store owners shouted out their wares and prices to attract customers.

The atmosphere of the island seemed bright and completely at peace. But, to a young knight from the Empire and his mentor, the island was hiding something ominous deep within its vibrant walls, and they would do anything to find out the secret of the floating metropolis.

* * *

Therius

The castle looked large enough from the outside, but the inside only made it seem even more spacious. There were many knights and servants who walked throughout the halls and courtyard, assisting others and carrying out their duties all the while. The ceiling was high above anyone's reach, and the floors were clean enough to reflect the people that walked on it.

I preferred the courtyard that opened up to the outside in the middle of the castle. Although the castle walls themselves were not particularly close, there were many people wandering the halls. Well, specifically there were many people who did nothing but gossip and sneak around like hyenas waiting to steal food. These nobles would sink to almost any level to receive any amount of prestige, fame, and money.

This attitude unfortunately has also spread to the knights of Lazulis Castle, as was evident by the lack of honor that the knights portrayed. They only cared about themselves and obtaining a higher rank and pay rather than defending the people and the honor of themselves as well as others. The abundance of greed that lingered in that castle sickened me, but I had to stay here for General Asthar. My mentor and fellow knight, General Asthar is an admirable man of great honor and integrity with an extreme love for defending and helping those in need.

General Asthar suddenly wished to travel the world to find the source of the decay of the land. Small lights that resembled flower petals drifted through the air, and the only thing that seemed to cause it was the land dying and crumbling away. The cause of the land's decay was unknown, so General Asthar wished to try and find the reason for it. When we arrived at Lazulis Castle, we could both feel as if something was amiss on the island and decided to stay and investigate further.

"Lost in thought, Therius?"

The sudden deep voice pulled me from my thoughts and back to reality, and I snapped to attention and stiffened my posture. "Forgive me, Genera! I should've been more alert."

The man in front of me laughed. "Therius, relax. It's good to be lost in thought from time to time. Not in battle, of course."

General Asthar was a grand man full of laughter. He stood proud and tall, cloaked in a blue cloth jacket that covered his knight armor. His dark eyes full of cheer hid the deep wisdom and courage within him, and his bright smile contrasted against his brown hair and beard.

"Is everything alright, General?", I asked him.

"Other the being concerned by your rigidness, I'm fine. And yourself?"

I instinctively forced myself to relax at his words. "Forgive me, General. I'm fine as well. I do admit that I feel as if I'm becoming claustrophobic from all of the people in the castle."

"I understand completely.", Asthar chuckled. "Even in the castle, it seems like the whole of Lazulis Town is in here."

He moved closer to the small fountain that I was standing nearby, placing an armored hand on my shoulder. "Then you shall be glad when I tell you of your new mission."

"Mission?"

"Indeed! Count Arganan has asked...more like demanded, for you and I to protect a mage that lives on the outskirts of the town."

"Both of us, General? Is the mage in that much peril?"

"I know not the smaller details, but are right to be suspicious. Perhaps he has sent us in order to hide something from natives of the island."

"It seems equally as bad, if not worse, for outsiders to be aware of any secret of his.", I replied.

"I was thinking the same, lad. Regardless, we cannot refuse a call for help, so we will go to the mage's aid." He patted my shoulder and gave me a reassuring smile. "It'll be easy for the two of us. Now, we will go when you are ready."

* * *

The town was its usual cheerful and busy disposition as General Asthar and I walked to our destination. People who noticed us occasionally bowed or gave overpolite greetings, and we did our best to greet everyone in return.

The mage that we were charged with lived on the edge of the town, and as we drew closer the amount of people in the streets dwindled. There were still a good amount of people, but not nearly as much as in the heart of the city. I much preferred it this way, with the streets not so crowded that people had to brush against each other just to pass through.

The gate that led outside of Lazulis Town was visible from the mage's house, but still a few houses away. It was a small-looking house, with multiple gardens of a variety of flowers, herbs, vegetables, and other plants that I didn't recognize. There was a woman outside tending one of the gardens, and she was startled when she eventually noticed us. General Asthar apologized and explained why we were there, and the woman relaxed and welcomed us inside of the house.

Inside was more generous in space than I expected; we entered into a central sitting area that shared its space with an area that seemed to be a kitchen. A hallway further into the sitting area split off into three directions, which I assumed were rooms for the people who lived here.

The woman who showed us in, Lady Merissa, invited us to sit in the living area and she would prepare tea for us. We thanked her and politely took our seats, and General Asthar was quick to strike a conversation.

"This is a very lovely home you have, my lady.", he said with a smile.

"Oh, thank you. It's not much, but we make the best of it.", she replied from the kitchen.

"Is it just you and Lady Liliana who live here?"

"Yes, but we do have patients who may have to stay overnight or longer. Other than that, it's just the two of us."

"I see."

Lady Merissa brought to us a tray assembled with three cups, and handed General Asthar and I one apiece. I thanked her and took a quick sip of the warm beverage, a flowery scent drifting through the air.

"Are you her mother, madam?", I asked.

She glanced toward me to smile sweetly as she took a seat across from us. "Yes I am, and a very proud one at that."

"Where is she?", General Asthar inquired.

Lady Merissa stared at the cup in her hand before taking a sip. "She went into town to sell some of the extra herbs that we've grown. She's usually back around this time, though."

General Asthar and I quickly noticed her change in tone. He nodded, and I immediately stood.

"I will go search for her, if you'd like.", I said.

"Oh, are you sure? I can go look for her myself."

"It's alright, my lady. We are tasked with protecting you and Lady Liliana, so we'll handle situations like these.", General Asthar reassured her.

I bowed to Lady Merissa and left to find Lady Liliana.

* * *

Lilia

They couldn't have just left me alone for one day, could they? They just had to show up just as I'm wrapping up for the day and about to head home. This is just great. At least they didn't involve anyone else; I only fully noticed them when I felt like I was being followed as I started heading home. Now I had to run myself around town to get these guys off of my tail so that they wouldn't follow me home and get Mother involved.

Acting as if nothing was wrong, I walked briskly through any tight alleyway that I could find, hoping that all the quick turns would confuse my followers and throw them off. These guys were good, however, and managed to keep up with me.

Ever since I was barely 11, I have had people chasing or following me. I've never been able to ask the pursuers directly why they want me, but the only explanation that I received was that I was special in some way that made me valuable for some people. My mother told me that, and I made myself be content with that answer. I couldn't help but wonder, however, about what it was that made me so special compared to other people.

The two stalkers persistently continued to follow me, which slowly started to chop at my patience. I've been twisting and turning through Lazulis Town for over 20 minutes, yet they continued to pursue me regardless. I wanted to use my magic to drive them off, but there were people nearby and the alleyways were too close. I didn't have my dagger on me, and they seemed more than prepared for a fight, so I was left to try to figure something out as I walked.

...Until I noticed that one of them was gone.

Admittedly I almost turned around to look for the other person, but I kept my calm and resisted the urge. If I freak out, they might react and involve others, and that's the last thing that I wanted. I kept my pace steady and continued walking, more observant of my surroundings in order to find the other stalker. I was so fixated on trying to find the missing one that I almost hit a wall, and I realized that I had ran myself into a dead end.

"Took me long enough to get you.", someone said from beside me, a tint of aggravation in his voice.

I didn't turn around, but I did acknowledge the person. "You think this'll be easy for you?"

"I've heard that you're a feisty one, so I've come prepared.", he replied.

As soon as his sentence ended, I flung myself at him, aiming a kick as his side. He swiftly moved away, and I could see a slightly bewildered look on his face. I took advantage of that and went after him again, but he managed to evade all of my blows. I would've rather had my dagger for a confrontation like this, but I could manage this way. I can use my magic here since there were only the two of us. I just had to have enough time to actually cast it, and I was sure that this guy wouldn't be nice enough to just let me.

Suddenly, I heard someone drop to the ground behind me, but I couldn't look behind me to see who it was due to having to evade the first stalker.

Finally come to help me?!", the first guy yelled out.

I felt dread creep throughout my veins. One guy was bad enough, but two would only make things more difficult for me. Now there was absolutely no chance of me casting magic, and I'd have to try to steal a weapon to cause any real damage.

A sword hilt that slammed into the first stalker's face immediately erased any dread that had enveloped me.

The man couldn't even gasp in surprise and fell silently on his back to the ground. I followed the sword hilt up to the person who wielded it; he had arrived wearing a huge black cloak that hid him almost entirely. He took the cloak off and threw it to the side, revealing a knight clad in white armor with a gold embroidery that resembled crosses. The armor was elaborate in detail, yet looked sturdy enough to defend its wearer through the toughest steel. He stood a few inches taller than me, and he had wavy white hair with a braided rattail that fell down his back past his waist. When he turned to face me, I noticed that he had pale skin and emerald eyes that were honest and serious.

"Are you alright, my lady?", he asked me as he extended his armored hand to me.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I didn't realize until then that I had fallen onto the ground. I took his hand, and he lifted me to my feet.

"Any injuries?", he inquired.

"No. How about you?"

"None at all." He bowed slightly to me. "I am Therius, and I am one of the knights assigned to protect you. The circumstances could have been better, but I am honored to make your acquaintance."

"Oh, I see. I'm Lilia. Nice to meet you, although I have to agree with you on the meeting."

He straightened himself. "Were you trying to return home?"

"Yeah. I was trying to lose those guys so that Mom wouldn't get involved.", I replied.

"I see. Does this happen often?"

"Every once in a while. This was the first time that I haven't been able to lose them."

"Hopefully that threat will dissipate now that you have knights protecting you."

"Right. Wait, there was a second one. Where's he?"

"I found him before I reached this area." Therius gestured to the black cloak on the ground. "He and his friend had planned to catch you in a pincer attack, so I used that to surprise the man here. I apologize if I alarmed you."

"Oh..no, you didn't. Did you leave him somewhere?"

"The other knight who is assigned to protect you kept him while I came here. He will carry the assailant to your home to meet us, and then carry them both to the dungeon in the castle."

He was very straightforward with his answers, not missing a beat and explaining everything as clear as a summer day. I guess I should expect that from a knight, and yet I noticed that he was different from the other knights that I have met or seen in the city.

"We are losing daylight. Shall I return you home, my lady?"

"Oh, right, sure." He promptness brought me out of my thoughts, and we both headed toward my home, Therius carrying the stalker over his shoulder effortlessly.


End file.
